Over the past few weeks, the /Film team has assembled personal lists of their favorite movies of the year so far, a look at where we stand halfway through the year. But those lists were also ballots, votes for one final article – a complete list of the entire site’s favorite movies of 2017 so far.

Of those six ballots (and 60 possible slots) contributed by Peter Sciretta, Jacob Hall, Ethan Anderton, Jack Giroux, Hoai-Tran Bui, and Ben Pearson, 28 films were named. And that brings us to the grand finale: the 28 best movies /Film has seen in the first half of this year.

This past weekend, A Ghost Story joined the specialty box office line-up by hitting theaters in New York in Los Angeles before the Sundance selected drama from Ain’t Them Bodies Saints and Pete’s Dragon director David Lowery expands in the coming weeks. Having caught the film at Sundance, I can say you haven’t seen a movie quite like this before. However, the title might be a little misleading for those expecting a ghost story that’s more horror than thoughtful drama. Furthermore, the ending may leave many perplexed as the scope of the narrative expands and becomes something bigger than you’d expect.

Thankfully, director David Lowery was asked about the ending to A Ghost Story, and he was happy to provide a little more explanation for those who might be confused when the credits start to roll. If you haven’t see A Ghost Story yet, don’t read any further because there are spoilers abound, and you really should wait for clarification until after you’ve seen it for yourself, even if that doesn’t happen until it’s available on home video. Read More »

(With 2017 halfway over, the /Film staff will be spending this week compiling lists of the best movies they’ve seen this year. In order to be eligible for the list, a film they’ve seen simply has to have a 2017 release date, even if they saw it at a festival or early screening. Here are Ethan Anderton’s top 10 movies of 2017 so far.)

The year is officially half over, and while we have six months before we can more effectively determine what our favorite movies of the year are going to be, it doesn’t hurt to take stock of the best films of 2017 so far. Though 2017 feels like it’s been rather lackluster, especially in the blockbuster department, there have been some lower key releases that absolutely deserve your attention. A few of them haven’t been given theatrical releases yet, but I was fortunate enough to catch them at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

Without further adieu, let’s dive into my own list of the best movies of 2017 so far. Read More »

The summer movie season is almost upon us. Comic book movies, reboots, spin-offs, and an unwanted sequel or two – they’re all coming out these next four months. We’re looking forward to more than a few of them, but I’m more hopeful for some of the movies coming to on-demand, steaming services, and local arthouse theaters this summer. Last week, we brought you the list of our most anticipated wide releases arriving this summer. And now, here’s the companion pieces: the 15 limited releases we’re most excited to see!

A few of the titles listed in our indie-themed 2017 summer movie preview below, including Sofia Coppola’s The Beguiled, are set to go wide after a small launch. However, keep your eyes open – most of these movies may require you to actively seek them out…and a fair number of them will surely prove worth the effort!

After director David Lowery was finished with Pete’s Dragon last year, he took the time to secretly shoot a film in Dallas, Texas throughout July and August. Production was completed in September, and the film had its world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, receiving plenty of acclaim. Now you can get a taste of what critics were raving about.

Fresh off their Best Picture win for Moonlight, A24 has unveiled the first trailer for their haunting indie drama A Ghost Story. This is truly one of the most unique films I’ve ever seen at a film festival, but it’s one that requires patience, an open mind, and plenty of afterthought. It’s difficult for a trailer to encapsulate the spirit of this mesmerizing movie, but hopefully it will be enough to help convince audiences to give it a chance.Read More »

A lot of films that premiere at the Sundance Film Festival are hoping to attract a distributor and find a wider audience, be it in theaters around the country or distributed through digital VOD. Throughout the festival, we will be reporting on all of the movies sold at Sundance 2017. This list should help give you an idea about which movies may someday be available to you either theatrically of VOD. These are the movies sold at Sundance 2017.

The reviews have been filed, the awards have been handed out, and the stars and cinephiles have left Park City: it’s time to close the book on the Sundance Film Festival for another year. Last week we brought you our quick impressions of every single film we saw at Sundance 2017. Today we’re rounding out our coverage with a ranked list of our very favorite movies from the fest. Click through to find out what we loved.

The /Film team of Angie Han, Ethan Anderton, and myself have returned from the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Over the six days we were in Park City, we screened over 36 movies (with only one movie having been watched by all three of us). Here are 15-second capsule reviews of all the movies we saw at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

If I told you there was a movie at Sundance where Casey Affleck appears for most of the film covered in a white sheet with black eyes like some kind of cheap Halloween ghost, you’d probably think it was some sort of quirky comedy. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.

It should come as no surprise that A Ghost Story is about a ghost. Casey Affleck plays a man, only identified as “C” in the film’s credits who dies in a head-on collision outside of the house where he lives with his wife “M” (Rooney Mara) in a small town. After his wife sees his body one last time in the hospital and leaves, the camera lingers, and after a couple of minutes of ambient sound, the sheet covering “C” raises as if he’s alive. And what follows is not horror, thriller or comedy, but a drama from director David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, Pete’s Dragon) the likes of which you haven’t seen before.